Deësis vault

1290s
Fresco
Upper Church, San Francesco, Assisi

The two frescoed vaults of the nave, one by Torriti and the other by the Isaac Master (the Master of the Isaac Stories), sum up the iconographic program of the walls beneath. The vault of the Deësis celebrates the church triumphant in the four tondi depicting Christ giving his blessing, the Virgin Mary, and St Francis and St John flanked by angels. The vault of the Doctors celebrates the Church militant, called on to prepare for the Kingdom of God on earth through the work of Jerome, Ambrose, Gregory, and Augustine.